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HISTORY OF ICST

ICST – International Combative Survival Tactics was founded in 2010 by Grand Master Neal J. Hummerstone. Developed after decades of teaching martial arts and military & police combative and defensive tactics. Much of the training taught in traditional martial arts through history require students to dedicate years of training in order to truly become proficient enough to be effective in actual battle or street confrontation.

The inspiration behind ICST is based on the concept that all citizens should have the opportunity, ability and skills to protect themselves from violent attacks – without having to devote a lifetime of training to do so. Strength, power and agility of youth is temporary. At some point in life people are affected and limited by age, injuries or health conditions. Students and warriors train for years in various fighting arts enjoying peak physical condition, relying on their youthful status. Then, when a person experiences limiting factors, whether from age, injury or medical conditions, they’re at a disadvantage without the speed and strength they once had. Grand Master Hummerstone set out to revise traditional instruction into a pure survival focus – to streamline the learning curve and to empower a wider range of students from inexperienced to advanced. The new system is fundamentally and tactically different from the traditional martial arts and self defense mind-set.

ICST teaches universal concepts, principles and tactics are designed to be simple to grasp, easy to retain, by-pass the strength requirement to focus on efficiency of movement and body energy. Instruction material was filtered down to the most essential tactical elements and condensed into proven modular format used in advanced military training. The modular approach allows students to acquire knowledge and skills in a number of areas within a relatively short time frame to be better prepared in protecting themselves from a violent attack, if and when the time comes. What you learn in class today, you can use effectively tomorrow should the need arise. This establishes the foundation for International Combative Survival Tactics (ICST).